Nutria Trap and Removal At Providence Lakes

Nutria Rats Are Not Welcome In Providence Lakes

Hello and thank you for visiting our page. Nuisance Wildlife Removal Inc. has been contracted by the Providence Lakes Master Association Inc. to remove Nutria within the association to prevent these rapidly spreading invasive species from damaging the finely tuned ecosystem in place in your lakes and causing premature bank erosion and damage to wetland plants.

A Little History About The Nutria

The Nutria (Myocastor coypus), are semi-aquatic rodents native to southern parts of South America, and were originally brought to the United States in 1889 for its fur. When the Nutria fur market collapsed in the 1940s, thousands of Nutria were released into the wild by ranchers who could no longer afford to feed and house them.

Entrepreneurs began selling the herbivores to control noxious weeds. Wildlife agencies further expanded the range of the Nutria by introducing the species into new areas of the United States. While the Nutria did devour weeds and overabundant vegetation, they also destroyed native aquatic vegetation, crops, and wetland areas.

The Nutria Species Is Rapidly Spreading

Recognized in the United States as an invasive wildlife species, nutria have been found in 22 States, and are currently established in 16 States. The Nutria’s relatively high reproductive rate combined with a lack of population controls have resulted in a proliferation of the species. In many regions they cause severe damage.

Nutria are most abundant in the Gulf Coast States, but they also cause problems in other southeastern States and along the Atlantic coast. In addition to damaging vegetation and crops, Nutria destroy the banks of ditches, lakes, and other water bodies.

Of greatest significance, however, is the permanent damage Nutria can cause to marshes and other wetlands. In these areas, Nutria feed on native plants that hold wetland soil together. The destruction of this vegetation intensifies the loss of coastal marshes that is stimulated by rising sea levels.